A Russian Proton DM booster was launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on 9 June carrying the national Express A1R communications satellite. The satellite is a replacement for Express A1 which was lost in a Proton launch failure in 1999.
The NPO-PM-built 2,600kg (5,730lb) satellite is equipped with a communications payload built by Alcatel Space, comprising 12 C-band and five Ku-band transponders.
Express A1R will be operated by the Russian Satellite Communications Company and Intersputnik.
The spacecraft was part of a federal programme to renew Russia's civil communications and broadcast satellite constellations, which will see the launch of six new satellites in the Express A and Express AM series by 2005. The next Proton launch will be on 22 June on an International Launch Services mission, carrying Echostar 8.
Source: Flight International